The Torch's Shadow
by FeelingMatttastic
Summary: The wind bears news of trouble sprouting yet again in Orre and both Michael and a mysterious stranger hear of it. Upon meeting, the two begin battle as the first step in the shadowy figure watching them's plan...


A wind blew heavy - as it always did in the area for some strange reason - as he rode up on his motorcycle. The girl in his sidecar was nearly sound asleep in the same pose she was always in, her head resting on her hand, orange hair falling over her face slightly.. The man driving chuckled softly, leaping out of the seat and onto the sandy ground. With a quick stretch he began walking towards what appeared to be a steam engine, flipping the visors off his eyes.

"Hey, you're…" a man with pink hair said, standing directly in front of the engine. The driver waved him off with the strange device on his left arm, entering the locomotive. Of course the moment he did he got a barrage of stares and from a few a round of applause - not every day you see a man in a long, flowing blue coat walk in. It was obvious it was some sort of stand with how the interior looked - a jukebox, multiple booths you'd see in a restaurant, even a TV. He sat in a stool directly in front of the entrance and moments later a glass of water was passed over to him from across the bar.

It took a few moments before the two met eyes; one was drinking water slowly while the other was practically inhaling his food. This red, spiky haired kid was already gaining an audience but things changed when the blue cloaked man saw him. His eyes were snapped onto the strange device on the kid's left arm; it looked awfully familiar… and then it hit him.

"…Hey. You. Kid with the yellow shirt." the man in blue called out to him. It took a few moments, and the person in question was still eating until someone tapped his shoulder and pointed to the man, but their eyes met. Almost dark yellow eyes meeting fairly large blue-green eyes, neither looking to yield before the other. The yellow shirted kid rose, stretching a bit and giving his dish to the bartender.

"The name's Michael. You have to heard of me by now, right?" The yellow shirted boy stated, a fairly cocky grin stretching across his face. This punk looking guy was not calling him out with his reputation - everyone had to have heard of him at this point! The blue coated man, however, didn't look as impressed.

"No. I haven't heard of you and frankly, I don't give a damn who you are. All I care about," he said eying the machine on Michael's arm, "is where you got another Snag Machine." Michael's face went from cocky grin to flat and serious in the span of five seconds. He exited his booth and walked over to the blue coated man.

"…How in Arceus' name do you know about this thing?" he said staring the man straight in the eyes. He flicked his eyes over to the man's left arm to what looked like a very… crude version of the Snag Machine.

"It doesn't matter. What does matter," the man rose. "is that you're using it for evil, aren't you?"

Michael raised an eyebrow; so this guy really doesn't know anything about him…

"So you really don't know anything about me then… Alright. Follow me outside and I'll show you if I'm using it for 'evil.'" Michael said, pushing past the mysterious stranger and walking outside. He looked over to the local rider, Willie, and waved him over. They began whispering for about a minute, in the meantime the man in blue walked outside, crossed his arms and began tapping his foot.

"Uh, Michael, you really don't know who you're messing with-" Willie started whispering, eying the man in the coat.

"I don't care who I'm messing with! Professor Krane built this Snag Machine in the events there was another Shadow Incident. The fact he knows about it…" Michael said in a rushed whisper. The two stood up straight, Michael walking straight over to him.

"Let's battle, here and now." He said, staring the blue coated man straight in the eyes. Behind his unflinching exterior he was honestly terrified; the way Willie portrayed him it was like staring Arceus in the eyes. It took all he had to stare him straight in those cold, unflinching eyes and say what he just did; and now what? He didn't have the element of intimidation - not that he did against the Cipher admins - but knowing your opponent's at least a tad paranoid made it easier. For once he was on the receiving end of the intimidation method.

"…Alright. Challenge accepted." the man said. With that he turned around, his sandy-brown hair flowing slightly in the wind and walked to his usual spot in front of the Outskirt Stand. To Michael it seemed like a natural process and so he took his spot opposite of the stranger.

"Six on six?" Michael asked, removing two Pokeballs from his belt; one was a blue color with two red stripes, the other a regular red on top, white on bottom ball with a black line and white button separating the sides in the middle.

"Sure." It took the stranger one word to get his point across, and with that he removed two Pokeballs of his own, another red and white and a yellow-black ball. Without a moment's hesitation he pressed the buttons on them, both expanding into the size of baseballs and threw them high into the air. They popped open and with a brilliant flash of light two figures formed: an oval shaped blue creature and a round pinkish-red creature with what could only be described as cannons poking out of it. The blue creature yawned, saying something along the lines of "Quagsire" and blinked it's beady eyes. The rounded creature on the other hand spun some, as if trying to warm up, and stared directly ahead with it's somewhat comedic eyes.

"Alright. Roserade, Jolteon, you're both up!" Michael yelled as he threw his Pokeballs into the air; out of them came a green creature with bushels of red and blue roses for hands and a yellow dog-like creature with a white mane-like formation. The four Pokemon stared at each other; they all knew what was going to be occurring in literally seconds.

"Quagsire, Earthquake. Forretress, Protect!" the stranger called out his commands and with a small leap the blue creature began shaking the ground. The sand around the Outskirt Stand was shifting as the ground underneath Michael's Pokemon began to crack and suddenly jut upwards. Forretress somehow sucked it's cannons into it's shell and shut it, somehow protecting it from all the chaos occurring outside of it.

"Oh no you don't! Jolteon, Protect yourself! Roserade, retaliate with a Giga Drain on Quagsire!" Michael's commands were barely hearable over the shaking ground but they were heard. The dog-like yellow monster created a green orb around it just as the ground shot up, propelling it into the air. Roserade, on the other hand, was shaken quite a bit and it took a few seconds to recompose itself. The moment it did, however, it charged straight at Quagsire, the rose bushels making up its hands glowing a soft green. It stopped shortly before the creature and whipped it's hands in front of it, shooting out spiky vines that wrapped around Quagsire, the entire contraption glowing the same green. After a few moments orbs of green energy flowed from Quagsire and into Roserade, the obvious scratches on it's exterior fading away as if nothing happened. On the other hand, scratches began opening on Quagsire and as the attack finished it fell to it's knees.

"Well played… Alright then, Forretress. Use Spikes! Quagsire, slam Roserade with an Ice Punch while it's right in front of you!" the stranger's commands were quick and to the point. This entire sequence was natural to him; operating in battle was the same way he drove his motorcycle. Once the engine was started it was like putting himself on cruise control; everything happened automatically. Forretress popped back out of it's shell, it's cannons extending back into place and it began to spin rapidly, shooting it's cannons in rapid success. When it was finished the entirety of the field was littered in tiny spiked objects.

It's as this point Willie ducked into the Outskirt Stand; he was already shaken up by the quaking earth earlier. He didn't want to risk puncturing his new boots on one of those spikes, they didn't need him "judging" the battle. At the same time, the orange-haired girl in the sidecar was wide awake, watching the battle from the safety of the sidecar. She was grinning; it had been a long time since she'd seen him battle for fun like this.

Meanwhile, Quagsire's stubby blue paws began to glow a light, icy blue and it began to swing at Roserade. It dodged a couple of swings, but after a few seconds of missing, Quagsire changed tactics. It was a learnt strategy at this point; if the opponent moves too move, let the ice itself do the damage. It punched the ground right besides Roserade with a bit of force, creating a spear of ice and knocking it off balance as it dodged right into the attack, right into the waiting fist of Quagsire's other paw. Roserade flew backwards and for a second it seemed she may be able to rise, but a layer of ice began forming over her, pinning her to the ground.

"…How long did it take you to teach your Quagsire to do _that_?!" Michael yelled, half amazed and yet half terrified. On one hand it was amazing how this stranger was such a good strategist that he let his Pokemon do half the thinking for themselves but on the other, he was in the middle of a battle and this meant Roserade was severely crippled. He shook it off; he could ask him after this was over.

"Oh, never mind; Roserade, return. " Michael raised Roserade's Pokeball and the creature - ice and all - turned into red energy and beamed back into the ball. After a bit of consideration he raised another Pokeball, this time the same yellow and black coloration as the stranger's. What was unleashed was a ferocious looking creature - a sleek blue body with red horns and wide, sweeping red wins and a long tail. It's underside was a grayish-white with faint lines separating it from it's mighty chest down to the beginning of it's tail. On it's neck down to just before it's chest and the end of it's chest to the tip of it's tail was a red stripe, it's jaw was pure white. It's eyes were focused, almost angry; and yet as it flapped it's mighty wings, it looked at Michael and seemed to smile.

The coated man had never seen a scenario like this in a long time, even in all his travels; after he thought he'd wiped Cipher off the face of the earth, he and his "girlfriend" as people kept calling her decided to travel, visiting a multitude of interesting places. Hoenn, Sinnoh, even briefly visiting Unova - but he'd gotten word that something was up back in Orre. Since none of the places he visited really gave two Tauros droppings about Orre, he hadn't heard wind of Michael and how he eradicated the second coming of Cipher, so of course his first instinct was that when he saw a Snag Machine, aside from his, was to assume it was trouble. So why would his Pokemon be so trusting…? It puzzled him, and it kept puzzling him as he prepared to react to Michael's commands.

"Alright, then, Salamence! You can fly circles around these guys, so give'em hell with Flamethrower! Jolteon, slam Forretress with a Thunder Wave before it can move!" Michael made sure to give his orders quickly as to catch the stranger off guard; who did he think he was? He had heard whispers of Cipher apparently staging a comeback soon and from the looks of things this was the man they were using; imagine their faces when their 'weapon' is destroyed! In the few moments he spent thinking this, Jolteon had dashed up to the orb known as Forretress and unleashed a non-lethal yet paralyzing jolt of electricity. Even as the stranger, still lost in thought, called for it to use Protect, Jolteon was too quick to the punch; the walnut was unable of shutting it's shell. At the same time, the mighty dragon flew overhead, reared it's head back and unleashed a huge torrent of flame onto the poor Pokemon, scorching it to the point of near faint; the only reason it hung on was it's innate ability and even then a faint wind could blow it over at this point.

The stranger's eyes squinted; this kid wasn't a pushover, that's for sure. If he was in on whatever was up in Orre, something bad might be on it's way. _Alright, no more screwing around, _he thought. _He's mad his case and it's time for us to bite back just as hard._

"Quagsire, Ice Punch that dragon! Forretress, try for the-" he barked his commands fierce and quickly. It's time that he made an offense for himself and he clenched his fists as he watch Quagsire swing at Salamence, finally clipping it's tail after a few failed swings. Forretress, on the other hand, was yet again paralyzed and on it's last knees; even with it's leftovers it wouldn't be able to survive another attack. Michael saw this as an opportunity; the ice punch had created a clump of ice on Salamence's tail and he made sure he'd taught it Dragon Tail. If he finagled it just right…

"Salamence! While Quagsire's still close, slam it with a Dragon Tail and make sure to break free of that ice! Jolteon, Thunderbolt the Forretress!" Michael began grinning at this point; he thought it was a guaranteed double knockout for his opponent and indeed it was. Quagsire fell backwards violently as the mighty dragon, weakened but still strong after the Ice Punch, drew back it's tail and smashed the newly found flail onto the side of it's skull, at the same time Jolteon charging volts of electricity and unleashing them onto the sitting duck of the husk of Forretress. Both fell backwards, knocked out cold, and both of which returned to their Pokeballs.

"…I'll give you that, that was pretty clever." the stranger said, selecting his next two Pokemon. After a brief moment of deliberation, two more Pokeballs were in his hands: the same ball Michael used to unleash Roserade and another yellow and black ball. He tossed both high into the air, unleashing what looked like a bird and a skinny, human-looking creature. The bird resembled a wide, curvy v, with tufts making small spikes on it's head, the leftmost red and rightmost blue; it balanced itself on two petit feet, it's chest covered in small red and blue triangles. The other Pokemon, on the other hand, was skinny up until the head and hips; it's head was shaped like a circle, somewhat, with three yellow dots on it's forehead. It had two ovals hanging down from behind it's head and one more sticking straight into the air; it's hips were almost triple the width as it's body and as it raised a knee, the yellow spots on it's knees were obviously visible.

"Okay, Togekiss. Use Dazzling Gleam on that Salamence! Medicham, Fake Out on Jolteon!" The stranger's orders were carried out quickly; Medicham dashed straight up to Jolteon with some speed and drew back a punch, then swinging and stopping right before it's face. Jolteon flinched like a madman just as Medicham hit it with it's other fist. Meanwhile, the two Flying Pokemon were intensely battling in the air, Togekiss firing bursts of light at Salamence every so often. Eventually it's aim became true and it hit the Salamence in the middle of it's back, sending it plummeting down into the earth, out cold. With a grimace Michael returned the mighty dragon back into it's Pokeball; Salamence was his ace in the hole this match… He removed a Pokeball from his belt and prepared to send out his next Pokemon.

"Ursaring! Come and show them what a true beast is!" Michael yelled, throwing a typical red and white Pokeball high into the air; what popped out was a monster to say the least. It was light brown and on two stubby legs; it's arms were long and had five short yet sharp claws. It's face was bearish, it's muzzle a golden brown and it's nose a black triangle. On it's stomach was a large, hollow circle the same color as it's muzzle. It stared down it's opponents with a menacing glare, raising it's claws and bellowing a loud roar… Half because of the layer of Spikes on the field, half because it attempted to intimidate it's foes.

The new Pokemon glared at each other hard, trying to psyche the other out and figure out weak spots. The dust that'd been thrown up the entire battle began to settle back down as the two trainers began considering their options; it was at least a minute before the next move was given…

"Jolteon, Thunderbolt on Togekiss! Ursaring, just get ready!" Michael called out. Within a heartbeat Jolteon began dashing at Togekiss as Ursaring shifted it's feet, getting ready to brace or attack, whichever his trainer decided. This, however, was all in the stranger's plan.

"Perfect. Togekiss, Follow Me! Medicham… Focus Punch!" Even the stranger cracked a grin after these orders; Togekiss could take one Thunderbolt, and of course he knew who he'd aim for. The most vulnerable target on the field…

"…! Okay, Ursaring, Protect! Keep Thunderbolting Jolteon!" Michael's commands were frantic, rushed; he had no time to think these through because of the amount of pressure that was placed on him suddenly. Jolteon skid to a halt in front of the bird-like creature, discharging millions of volts of electricity from it's body right into the poor Pokemon's. Medicham, on the other hand, was sitting there, focusing and gathering energy into it's fist. After a moment it opened its eyes, fist glowing with an awesome power, giving off an aura of pure white.

"Now then… Slam Jolteon with it." The stranger smirked and crossed his fingers; by time Michael reacted the deed was done. Medicham blindsided Jolteon, slamming it's fist right into it's face and knocking it into Michael, making them both fall over. After a moment Jolteon was returned to it's Pokeball and Michael rose, muttering curses under his breath.

Meanwhile, the entirety of the Outskirt Stand was watching this intense battle; people were placing bets, eating food, all sorts of actions people would take while watching a sport. Willie eyed the sky, however, and saw a faint black dot… He shrugged it off. _Probably a wild Pokemon because of one of those newfangled Pokespots_, he thought. _Nothing to worry about right now. _The girl in the bike, on the other hand, was eying it a bit more cautiously; she still didn't have any Pokemon of her own and as such she was scared for the outcome of this battle. What if this "Michael" kid was just stalling for time? She wanted to run up to her "boyfriend" and tell him this news but she knew how he got when he battled. _'Just tell me when there's a Shadow Pokemon and let me do the rest.' _he kept saying. Still, that didn't help her from biting her lip in worry.

In the distance, however, someone was watching this battle through a pair of binoculars. He wore a long dark blue and black cloak and a pair of sunglasses; his hair was the same color as the blue portions of his coat. He called a name and the black dot that Willie and the stranger's friend saw landed beside him briskly.

"Soon enough, Honchkrow. Soon enough Cipher shall rise again, and it shall be at the hands of Lord Greevil's only son, Ardos!"


End file.
